Dental and oral preparation for smokers for solubilizing and removing tobacco tars as well as onion and garlic essential oils

ABSTRACT

An oral preparation for removing cigarette tar deposits on the teeth, gums, tongue, and other surfaces of the oral cavity of smokers. The preparation includes at least one nonionic surfactant in a concentration range of from about 1.0% to about 6.0% by weight, methyl salicylate in a concentration range of from about 0.06% to about 0.20% by weight, at least one essential oil in a concentration range of from about 0.30% to about 2.0% by weight, ethyl alcohol in a concentration range of from about 12.0% to about 20.0% by weight, and at least one anionic surfactant in a concentration range of from about 0.5% to about 4.5% by weight.

This application is a continuation, of Ser. No. 08/291,054 filed Aug.15, 1994, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/043,891,filed on Apr. 7, 1993, all now abandoned.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to dental and oral hygiene, and in particular, toa preparation to dissolve and/or disperse and remove deposits on theteeth, gums, tongue, and other surfaces in the oral cavity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is well known that tobacco smoking can cause the deposition ofmaterials on the teeth, tongue, gums, and other surfaces in the oralcavity of smokers. The result of the deposition of these materials iswell known by any one who smokes or knows someone who smokes. The mostwell known of these effects include the discoloration of the teeth andother surfaces within the oral cavity such as the gums and tongue andthe causing of bad breath. Stained teeth can be unsightly and bad breathcan be unpleasant for the smoker and those he or she comes into contactwith. Additionally, as described below, the materials deposited on theinterior surface of the mouths of smokers can lead to health problems,such as tooth decay and gum disease. It is also well known that food andoils and other materials contained in the food can be deposited on thesurfaces of peoples' mouths.

The major constituent of deposits caused by smoking is commonly known as"tar". Tobacco tar is loosely defined as a dark, oily, viscid blend ofpolycyclic aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons, although tar alsocontains other compounds. Tar is produced as tobacco in a cigarette,cigar, or pipe burns. The tar is contained within the smoke produced bythe burning of the tobacco.

As a smoker smokes a cigarette, pipe, or cigar, he or she inhales thetar along with the other tobacco combustion products as the smoke issucked into the mouth and eventually into the lungs. The smoke is thenblown out of the body as the smoker exhales and the smoke passes throughthe mouth of the smoker once again. Therefore, the smoke passes throughthe mouth of the smoker twice, upon inhalation and exhalation, providingample opportunity for the compounds in the tar to come into contact withthe teeth, gums, tongue, and other surfaces in the oral cavity and bedeposited thereon. Obviously, the more a person smokes, the more tarwill be deposited in the mouth of the smoker.

Dentists and hygienists can immediately detect smokers by the heavystaining of the lingual surface of the mandibular anterior teeth. Thesestains are observed as being resinous in nature. According to a recentstudy by the Centers for Disease Control, smokers' teeth are generallytwice as stained as non-smokers'. McKendrick, Barbenel, and McHugh,Indiana School of Dentistry (1970).

Due to the hydrophobic nature of the compounds contained within the tar,the tar is not easily dissolved or dispersed by commonly available overthe counter mouth treatments such as toothpastes, gels, and oral rinses.As a result, tar can build up on the teeth, dentures, denture plates,artificial teeth and other surfaces of the smoker's mouth causing, amongother things, staining of plaque and calculus and an aestheticallydispleasing appearance of the smoker's teeth and mouth. Additionally,since the compounds in tar have an unpleasant aroma, their depositionand residence within the mouth of smokers can cause chronic halitosis.The difficulty in removing the tar deposits within the mouth of smokersis increased by there viscid nature. Many compounds contained withinfood and other substances that come into contact with peoples' mouthshave a chemical nature similar to that of tobacco tar and can also bedeposited on the surfaces of the mouth, build up there, and causeproblems similar to those caused by the tobacco tar.

Therefore, as the tar deposits as well as deposits of other materials,such as oils in food, build up in the mouth of the smokers, not only arethe teeth and the rest of the mouth discolored by the tar and the breathof the smokers caused to take on a malodorous nature, the tar can becomeincorporated into the plaque and calculus which forms on the teeth.Because of its especially tenacious nature, the calculus is onlyremovable by a dentist or dental hygienist with a steel pick. Becausethe tar can reduce the immune response, bacteria has the opportunity toproliferate. Bacterial can cause tooth decay, gingivitis, bleeding andswelling of the gums, and periodontal disease. Therefore, tobacco tar isa real health problem.

As discussed above, tar is especially difficult to remove once depositedon the surface of the teeth, gums, tongue, and the rest of the oralcavity. Materials in food and other substances coming into contact withpeoples' mouths can also be just as difficult to remove. In an attemptto remove tar and other deposits from teeth, products such astoothpastes and gels were developed which claim to remove tobacco tar.Known tar removing products remove the tar by physical abrasion, similarto how sandpaper removes the surface layer of wood, for example. Theseproducts usually include an aluminum or silicon based abrading materialto physically remove the tar from the surfaces in the mouth. All knownanti-tobacco stain products on the market are in toothpaste form. Sincethese known products do not include ingredients which dissolve and/ordisperse tar, but rather, remove tar by physical abrading action, theyrub the tar off the surfaces of the mouth as the smoker brushes his orher teeth.

Unfortunately, the abrading materials in these known oral preparationsdo not differentiate between tar and other materials, such as the actualsurface of the teeth. Therefore, in addition to removing tobacco tar,these materials can actually remove enamel from the teeth themselves.Removal of the enamel could cause the teeth to become sensitive, whichcan cause individuals to avoid brushing their teeth, which may lead totooth loss. For example, the outer enamel layer can be partially removedby these known products, thereby damaging the teeth and creatingscratches on the surface of the teeth.

These scratches can make the teeth more susceptible to decay andendanger the softer interior layers of the teeth. Also, the scratchescan act to increase the surface area of the teeth, thereby increasingthe number of places where bacteria can attach to the surface of thetooth and potentially cause tooth decay. These abrasive cleaners arealso not capable of removing tar from microscopic concavities in theteeth which are too small for the abrasives to enter or from any surfacewhich the abrasive materials can not be rubbed against, such as theinterproximal spaces between teeth and some gingival spaces between theteeth and gums.

Therefore, these known abrasive materials which claim to remove tobaccotar from the surfaces of teeth can in fact leave much tar untouched onteeth and oral soft tissue and actually cause damage to the oral cavity.For these reasons, dentists usually do not recommend the use of thesetypes of oral preparations.

As opposed to abrading compositions, it would be desirable to have anoral rinse mouthwash that could remove tar from all surfaces in themouth of a smoker and not physically harm the tooth surface. It would beadvantageous to have a mouthwash that could dissolve and/or disperse thetobacco tar thereby removing it from the mouth without any of theadverse effects described above. However, no known available oral rinseproduct available on the market today is directed to or is capable ofpreforming the function of dissolving or dispersing tobacco tareffectively.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an oral rinse composition which includesa unique combination and concentration of nonionic surfactants andcyclic aromatic essential oils. Both the combination and amounts ofthese ingredients is unknown in the prior art. The oral preparationincludes at least one nonionic surfactant with a concentration rangefrom about 0.3% to about 6.5% by weight. Additionally, at least onecyclic, preferably aromatic, essential oil in a concentration range offrom about 0.03% to about 3.5% by weight is included in the oralpreparation of the present invention.

The present invention is also directed to a method of removing depositson the teeth, dentures, dental plates, gums, tongue, and other surfacesof the oral cavity. The method includes introducing into the mouth apreparation for dissolving or dispersing the deposits. The preparationincludes at least one nonionic surfactant having a concentration rangefrom about 0.3% to about 6.5% by weight is also included. Additionally,at least one cyclic aromatic essential oil in a concentration range offrom about 0.03% to about 3.5% by weight is included in the oralpreparation of the present invention.

The composition and method of the present invention produce theunexpected results of being able to remove tar without abrasive actionor physically damaging teeth unknown in the prior art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The active ingredients of the oral preparation of the present inventionfor removing deposits on the teeth, gums, tongue, and other surfaces inthe oral cavity preferably include at least one nonionic surfactant andat least one cyclic, preferably aromatic, essential oil. Preferably, thepresent invention may also include at least one anionic surfactant,although the present invention will still function well without ananionic surfactant component. Additionally, the preparation of thepresent invention may also include flavorings, solvents, a vehicle forthe preparation, humectants, and preservatives.

It has been found that including the ingredients in the combination inthe present invention and the amounts of the present invention providesthe preparation of the present invention with the ability to dissolveand/or disperse material deposited on the surface of the teeth, gums,tongue, and other surfaces of the oral cavity. Specifically, the presentinvention has the ability to dissolve and/or disperse tobacco tar oncontact. Such an ability to dissolve and/or disperse tar is unknownamong known oral preparations. The preparation of the present inventionmay be included in an oral rinse or in toothpastes or gels, or powders,or in any other effective form, simply with the addition to the aboveingredients of a thickening or gelling agent.

The nonionic surfactant component of the present invention may act as atar solubilizer and/or flavor solubilizer, among other things. Anypharmaceutically or orally acceptable nonionic surfactant may be usedaccording to the present invention. Examples of nonionic surfactantswhich may be used in the present invention include glycerol-polyethyleneglycol oxystearate (PEG 40, Cremophor RH40 and 60 available from BASF),polyoxyethylene esters or sorbitol laurate esters, such aspolyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate, polyoxyethylene sorbitanmonoisostearate, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monostearate, polyoxyethylenesorbitan monooleate, polyoxyethylene or sorbitol laurate estersincluding polysorbates, and block polymers of polyoxyethylene andpolyoxypropylene (pluronic 127). Preferably, the concentration range ofnonionic surfactants included in the present invention is from about0.3% to about 6.5% by weight.

The present invention may also include at least one anionic surfactant.The anionic surfactant component of the present invention may act as asudsing agent and tar co-solubilizer, among other things. Anypharmaceutically or orally acceptable anionic surfactant may be usedaccording to the present invention. Examples of anionic surfactantswhich may be used in the present invention include sodium lauryl sulfateand a pharmaceutical or oral grade of sodium ether lauryl sulfate.Preferably, the concentration range of anionic surfactants included inthe present invention is from about 0.3% to about 4.5% by weight.

In contrast to the prior art in which anionic surfactants are includedin dental rinses to create mild sudsing and to help remove some oraldebris such as food and related oils, the present invention may includeanionic surfactants in concentration ranges high enough in conjunctionwith other ingredients to actually dissolve and/or disperse the tobaccotar. In addition, the nonionic surfactants are used in the prior artonly to keep the essential oils used as flavors in solution. Again, inthe present invention, the nonionic surfactants are included to helpsolubilize the tar they come in contact with and are present in suchhigh concentration ranges that they preform this function.

Tobacco tar contains much higher molecular weight materials than thestandard essential oils used as flavors. Therefore, to solubilize tar,the amount of nonionic surfactants or the amount of the combination ofnonionic and anionic surfactants, if anionic surfactants are included inthe formulation, as a percentage of total weight is much greater in thepresent invention than in the prior art. It is the high concentrationand combination of surfactants in the present invention which in partprovides it with its superior and unexpected ability to dissolve and/ordisperse tobacco tar as compared to the prior art. Most prior artmouthwashes contain from about 0.02% to about 2.0% by weightsurfactants. On the other hand, the present invention includessurfactants in a concentration range of from about 0.3% to about 11.0%by weight.

The present invention also preferably includes a different surfactantblend than prior art mouthwashes. The only oils that prior artmouthwashes are designed to solubilize are the flavors and essentialoils, not the oils included in tobacco tar and other oily substancesdeposited in the mouth. Preferably, the present invention includes acombination of anionic and nonionic surfactants, including at least oneof each.

The active ingredients of the present invention also include aromaticessential oils such as methyl salicylate. The aromatic essential oilcomponent of the present invention may act as a tar solubilizer, amongother things. Any pharmaceutically or orally acceptable aromaticessential oil may be used according to the present invention. Examplesof aromatic essential oils which may be used in the present inventioninclude methyl salicylate, anise, anethol, bergamot, camphor, cinnaminicanhydrides, clove, eucalyptol, peppermint, spearmint, and thyme, amongothers. Preferably, the concentration range of aromatic essential oilsincluded in the present invention is from about 0.03% to about 3.75% byweight.

In the prior art, essential oils are used mainly as flavors and aretypically used in a concentration range of from only about 0.05% toabout 0.30% by weight for flavoring, and do not have any other function.In fact, they are not present in high enough concentrations to beeffective in any other manner, except for a slight anti-microbialeffect. These aromatic essential oils in combination with the anionicand nonionic surfactants also present in higher concentrations than areknown in the prior art help to dissolve and/or disperse significantlymore tar than known prior art dental preparations. A significantdifference between the present invention and the prior art is that inthe prior art methyl salicylate is included mainly as a flavoring; inthe present invention methyl salicylate when included in the relativelyhigh concentration ranges will act to solubilize tobacco tar, inconjunction with other ingredients.

Other ingredients included in the present invention include a vehiclefor the oral preparation, solvents, humectants, sweeteners, flavors, andpreservatives. The preferred vehicle for an oral rinse preparedaccording to the present invention is water. With water used as thevehicle to prepare such a rinse, the water is present in theconcentration range of from about 50 to about 85% by weight. Additionalvehicles which may be included in the present invention include pastesand gels, which allow the present invention preparation to be used as atooth paste rather than a rinse.

The present invention may also include a solvent in a concentrationrange of from about 3.0% to about 30.0% by weight. Solvents help to keepall of the ingredients in the dental preparation dissolved. The solventswhich may be included in the present invention include ethanol. However,any pharmaceutically or orally acceptable solvent may be used.

Humectants may also included in the present invention in concentrationranges of from about 3% to about 15% by weight. Humectants help tostabilize the water content of the solution. Humectants which may beused in the present invention include, among others, glycerine andsorbitol. However, any pharmaceutically or orally acceptable humectantmay be used in the preparations of the present invention. The humectantalso helps to give the rinse a better feel to the mouth.

The present invention may also include essential oils as flavoringcomponents in addition to the methyl salicylate discussed above as a tarsolubilizer. Any of the cyclic, aromatic essential oils which may beused to solubilize tar may also be used as flavoring.

Additionally, the present invention may include a preservative inconcentration ranges of from about 0.05% to about 2.0% by weight. Suchpreservatives include benzoic acid and sodium benzoate, among others,however, any pharmaceutically or orally acceptable preservative may beused to prepare the present invention.

Further, the present invention may include a sweetener, such as sodiumsaccharin, in a concentration range of from about 0.01% to about 0.7% byweight. A color may also be added to the preparation of the presentinvention in a concentration range of from about 0.001% to about 0.5% byweight.

By including the plurality of different surfactants and the methylsalicylate, the present invention achieves it superior ability to removetar from surfaces within the mouths of smokers. The differentsurfactants have different functionalities which act on the tar indifferent manners. For instance, the nonionic surfactants are tarsolubilizers and the anionic surfactants are detergents and detergentbuilders/sudsing aids. The anionic surfactants help to suspend thedissolved or dispersed tar particles as they are removed from thesurfaces of the mouth. The anionic surfactants include hydrophobichydrocarbon side chains which help to solubilize the alkyl portions ofthe tar. In addition, the methyl salicylate helps to solubilize themolecules in the tar which include cyclic members. No known prior artdental preparation includes the combination and amount of ingredientsincluded in the present invention. It is the composition of the presentinvention which provides it with the unexpected ability to dissolveand/or disperse tar as effectively as it does in the amounts that itdoes.

In addition to the oral rinse form of the product, the preparation ofthe present invention may be included in gels or pastes utilizingthickening or gelling agents. Such agents include, among others, silicaaerogels, pyrogenic silica, silica precipitates, carboxymethylcellulose, carboxyvinyl polymers, xanthan gum, and carrageenan.

The following examples are of preferred embodiments are onlyillustrative. All amounts and proportions referred to here and in theclaims are by weight unless otherwise indicated. N/A indicates that theingredient is not included in that example solution. The preparations ofthe examples are all included in an oral rinse. However, these samecompositions could be modified to be included in a toothpaste or gel forexample, by including a thickening and/or gelling agents.

                  TABLE 1    ______________________________________    Ingredient     Example 1 Example 2 Example 3    ______________________________________    Solvent        16.5      15.0      12.5    Alcohol    Ethanol    Vehicle        66.5      68.40     77.90    Water    Humectant    Glycerin       7.0       5.0       6.25    Sorbitol       5.0       5.0       N/A    Sudsing Aid    2.0       1.75      1.25    Anionic Surfactant    Sodium Lauryl Sulphate    Tar Solubilizer and/or    Flavor Solubilizer    Nonionic Surfactant    Cremophor RH40 N/A       0.85      N/A    Cremophor RH60 N/A       N/A       0.50    Polysorbate 20 N/A       1.5       N/A    Polysorbate 80 0.75      N/A       0.75    Cyclic Aromatic    Essential Oil    Methyl Salicylate                   2.0       2.25      0.50    Flavor         0.25      0.25      0.25    Essential Oil    Preservative   N/A       N/A       0.10    Benzoic Acid    ______________________________________

All of the exemplified formulations represent satisfactory, pleasing,acceptable and effective deposit removing mouth rinses havingsatisfactory storage ability with respect to color, appearance, taste,and the like.

Generally, the preparation is prepared by adding the ingredients in thefollowing sequence. First, a sudsing agent may be added to the vehicle.Next, the surfactants are added to the solvent. Then, any flavoring isadded to the solvent/surfactant mixture. Finally, the vehicle andsolvent solutions are mixed together.

To demonstrate the effectiveness of the present invention as compared toknown oral rinses, an experiment was performed in which tobacco tarcovered slides were exposed to an oral rinse prepared according to thepresent invention, and to two commercial products PLAX and LISTERINE.According the experiment, three identical samples of glass plates onwhich identical amounts of cigarette tar had been deposited or used. Thesamples were exposed to identical amounts of the three oralpreparations.

The amounts of tar removed from the three samples and dissolved ordispersed within the solutions was determined by spectrophotometricanalyses of each sample using a Bausch & Lomb spectronic 601 UV visiblespectrophotometer. The analytical wavelength of the spectrophotometerwas a 330 nm. Quartz cuvettes were used throughout these experiments.

After exposing the glass slides stained with the tar to the mouthwash,the absorbency of the spectrophotometer was set to 0 using a cleansample of the selected mouthwash product diluted at a ratio of 1 to 25by volume with methanol. Samples of the oral preparations to which thetar stained glass slides were exposed were then diluted at a ratio of 1to 25 by volume with methanol. The absorbencies of each of thesesolutions were then measured and recorded. Tar concentrations in eachsample of the oral preparations were then determined from these data byreference to the absorbency obtained from a standard solution containing0.250 milligrams per milliliter of cigarette tar in methanol, correctingfor the 1 to 25 volume dilution of the experimental samples.

The results of the experiment, contained in Table 2 demonstrate that anoral preparation prepared according to the present invention removedmore than ten times as much tobacco tar than either the PLAX orLISTERINE products. As can be seen from the table, the present inventionremoved at least 11 times the amount of tar from the samples as thecommonly available products LISTERINE and PLAX. In fact, the othermouthwashes were not very effective at removing the tar. Additionally,the present invention accomplishes this large, unexpected increase intar removal without using any abrading materials, as are commonly usedin the prior art.

Observations of the results of the various solutions' effects on the taralso indicates the superiority of the present invention tar solubilizingability. Immersing a tar stained slide in an embodiment of the presentinvention caused the solution to turn brown; this sample of the presentinvention was not hazy. The LISTERINE and PLAX containing samples becamehazy. The haze in the solutions demonstrate that any suspended particlesare large enough to scatter light. The present invention dissolved thetar into particles so small, they did not scatter light. This test is astandard indicator of solvent/solute solubility.

                  TABLE 2    ______________________________________                Tar Concentration                               Standard Deviation    Sample      mg/ml          mg/ml    ______________________________________    PLAX        0.229          0.006    LISTERINE   0.262          0.006    Present Invention                3.03           0.01    ______________________________________

The present invention has also been tested on tobacco tar stainedextracted teeth from humans. In these tests, the present invention wasfound to remove tobacco tar quickly, efficiently, and to a much greaterdegree than any known product.

Interim results of a human in-vivo clinical study shows a 45% tar stainreduction in the test population after one week of use. These studiesalso indicate that the present invention reduces the adhesive surfacesof bacteria within bacterial colonies. This effect possibly comes fromthe known ability of methyl salicylate to break down compounds having anadhesive character. By breaking down or at least partially reducingadhesive compounds on the bacteria, the present invention can reduce theability of the bacteria to colonize. It is this ability to sticktogether that allows bacteria to colonize and eventually cause cavities.

An oral preparation according to the present invention will act todissolve and/or disperse tar deposited on all surfaces within the mouth.In particular, the present invention will dissolve and/or disperse tardeposited on the gums, tongues, and other soft tissues within smokers'mouths. For example, cotton gauze saturated with a preparation preparedaccording to the present invention wiped on the tongues of smokers werecolored brown from the removed tar. On the other hand, cotton gauzesaturated with a water placebo were barely stained, and this stainingwas attributed to the physical action of the wiping on the tongue alone.

Additionally, the preparation of the present invention is also suitablefor use on denture material. In addition to being useful for dissolvingtar, the present invention will also rapidly dissolve and/or disperse,remove from the mouth, and/or mask food, food odors, oils, and otherhydrophobic materials, among other things. Examples include essentialoils from onions and garlic, which the present invention hasdemonstrated the ability to remove from the mouth so that they cannot bedetected.

I claim:
 1. An oral tobacco tar onion oil and garlic oil removingpreparation for removing cigarette tar deposits as well as essentialoils from onion and garlic on the teeth, gums, tongue, and othersurfaces of the oral cavity as well as dentures of smokers, comprising amixture of:at least one nonionic surfactant in a concentration range offrom about 0.3% to about 6.5% by weight; methyl salicylate in a tar andonion and garlic essential oil solubilizing concentration range of fromabout 0.06% to about 0.20% by weight; at least one essential oil in aconcentration range of from about 0.30% to about 2.0% by weight; ethylalcohol in a concentration range of from about 12.0% to about 20.0% byweight; and at least one anionic surfactant in a concentration range offrom about 0.3% to about 4.5% by weight.
 2. The oral preparationaccording to claim 1, aromatic essential oil.
 3. The oral preparationaccording to claim 1, wherein said anionic surfactant is selected fromthe group consisting of sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium ether laurylsulfate.
 4. The oral preparation according to claim 1, wherein saidnonionic surfactant is selected from the group consisting ofglycerol-polyethylene glycol oxystearate, polyoxyethylene esters orsorbitol laurate esters, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate,polyoxyethylene sorbitan monoisostearate, polyoxyethylene sorbitanmonostearate, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate, polyoxyethylenelaurate esters, sorbitol laurate esters including polysorbates, andblock polymers of polyoxyethylene and polyoxypropylene.
 5. The oralpreparation according to claim 2, wherein said cyclic aromatic essentialoil includes at least one selected from the group consisting of methylsalicylate, anise, anethol, bergamot, camphor, cinnaminic anhydrides,clove, eucalyptol, peppermint, spearmint, and thyme.
 6. The oralpreparation according to claim 1, further comprising a vehicle, at leastone humectant, and at least one preservative.
 7. The oral preparationaccording to claim 6, wherein said vehicle is water and is included insaid oral preparation in a concentration range of from about 50% toabout 80% by weight.
 8. The oral preparation according to claim 6,wherein said humectant includes at least one selected from the groupconsisting of glycerin and sorbitol and is included in said oralpreparation in a concentration range of from about 3% to about 15% byweight.
 9. The oral preparation according to claim 6, wherein saidpreservative includes at least one member selected from group consistingof benzoic acid and sodium benzoate and is included in said oralpreparation in a concentration range of from about 0.1% to about 2.0% byweight.
 10. The oral preparation according to claim 1 further comprisingat least one sweetener in a concentration range up to about 0.7% byweight.
 11. The oral preparation according to claim 1 further comprisingat least one coloring agent in a concentration range up to about 0.5% byweight.
 12. The oral preparation according to claim 1, wherein saidpreparation is a mouthwash.
 13. A method of removing tobacco tar andonion and garlic essential oil deposits on the teeth, gums, tongue andother surfaces of the oral cavity, comprising:introducing into the moutha preparation for dissolving or dispersing the tobacco tar and onion andgarlic essential oil deposits, said preparation comprising a mixture ofat least one nonionic surfactant in a concentration range of from about0,.3% to about 6.5% by weight, methyl salicylate in a tar and onion andgarlic essential oil solubilizing concentration range of from about0.06% co about 0.20% by weight; at least one essential oil in aconcentration range of from about 0.30% to about 2.0% by weight; ethylalcohol in a concentration range of from about 12.0% to about 20% byweight; and at least one anionic surfactant in a concentration range offrom about 0.3% to about 4.5% by weight.
 14. The method according toclaim 13, wherein said essential oil is a cyclic aromatic essential oil.15. The method according to claim 14, wherein said anionic surfactant isselected from the group consisting of sodium lauryl sulfate and sodiumether lauryl sulfate.
 16. The method according to claim 13, wherein saidnonionic surfactant is selected from the group consisting ofglycerol-polyethylene glycol oxystearate, polyoxyethylene esters orsorbitol laurate esters, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate,polyoxyethylene sorbitan monoisostearate, polyoxyethylene sorbitanmonostearate, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate, polyoxyethylenelaurate esters, sorbitol laurate esters including polysorbates, andblock polymers of polyoxyethylene and polyoxypropylene.
 17. The methodaccording to claim 13 further comprising a vehicle, at least onehumectant, and at least one preservative.
 18. The method according toclaim 17, wherein said vehicle is water and is included in said oralpreparation in a concentration range of from about 50% to about 70% byweight.
 19. The method according to claim 17, wherein said humectantincludes at least one selected from the group consisting of glycerin andsorbitol and is included in said oral preparation in a concentrationrange of from about 3% to about 15% by weight.
 20. The method accordingto claim 17, wherein said preservative includes at least one selectedfrom the group consisting of benzoic acid and sodium benzoate and isincluded in said oral preparation in a concentration range of from about0.1% to about 0.2% by weight.
 21. A method of removing cigarette tar andonion and garlic essential oil deposits on the teeth, gums, tongue andother surfaces of the oral cavity and dentures of smokers, comprisingcontacting teeth or dentures with an oral preparation for dissolving ordispersing the tar and onion and garlic essential oil deposits, saidpreparation comprising a mixture of:at least one anionic surfactant in aconcentration range of from about 0.3% to about 4.5% by weight; at leastone nonionic surfactant in a concentration range of from about 0.3% toabout 6.5% by weight; methyl salicylate in a tar and onion and garlicessential oil solubilizing concentration range of from about 0.06% toabout 0.20% by weight; ethyl alcohol in a concentration range of fromabout 12.0% to about 20.0% by weight; and at least one cyclic,preferably aromatic essential oil in a concentration range of from about0.30% to about 2.0% by weight.